~ Exploring the Aesthetics of Food and Wine

Tag Archives: Lodi Wines

Oh my. A mammoth, raging bull of a wine, pawing the ground and preparing to charge. Aromas of very ripe berry, coffee, with cinnamon hints against a raw wood background avenge all those feeble French wines you’ve been drinking. In the mouth, it’s in your face. Ripe fruit tempered by milk chocolate feels broad, heavy and a bit coarse but with plenty of linear fruit power carrying through the medium-length finish. With tannins turning powdery, its the angular acidity that gives this wine length battling for every inch. The alcohol is well disguised on the nose but feels a bit hot in the mouth.

As a reviewer, wines like this give me headaches trying to give it a fair assessment. For people who like uber-power and strength with lots of weight this wine will make you dance like a matador. But there is utterly no finesse. It’s not something I would drink regularly but it wasn’t designed to be nuanced. It’s not pretending.

Michael and David Phillips, 5th generation grape-growers from Lodi who started the winery in 1984, are known for their wild labels and memorable brand names like their 7 Deadly Zins. Freakshow is no exception; label shoppers will find it irresistible. But the juice is pretty good as well if you like big upfront fruit.

Smoke melding into a chocolate background envelop very ripe black cherry aromas and hints of damp forest floor. The foundation of ripe almost prune-like aromas establish the wines dominant character giving it a dark almost brooding aspect on the nose.

The palate flavors initially reinforce the nose with fig and heavy dark chocolate with a slight woodiness appearing midpalate as the wine gathers momentum. The finish is a bit short, losing fruit quickly leaving soft, fine-grained, yet drying tannins in its wake. Round, full, and a bit heavy upfront, the midpalate refreshes with a nice caramel/cola seam providing some lift and lightening the mood before leaving a sandy impression in closing.

This classifies as a fruit bomb but it’s well made and shows some textural evolution. It’s more of a sipper than a food wine. A big barbecue sauce or grilled steaks would be fine. I served it with stuffed flank steak (Bavette de beouf farcie) but the rich, figgy, dried fruit seemed too imperious.

17 months in French oak.

For a family winery this is a huge operation producing over 600,000 cases per year, and their children now run the operation so it seems likely to stay in the family for awhile. That’s nice to see in an age of rapid consolidation in the wine business.

For all its brooding quality, this is not an angry Cab. It aims to be more easygoing. This piece by King Sunny Aide brings some sorely needed freshness and brightness to the experience. The elongated synth phrasing and repetitive percussion gives the wine length and evolution and brings out top notes.

Yesterday in a blog post I was lamenting the preferences of wine consumers who like generic, homogenized wine instead of seeking something more interesting. This wine under review proves that if you’re willing to spend only $10-$12 on a bottle of wine, you are not condemned to the sweet- smooth-soft swill inhabiting the bottom shelf at the supermarket.

This Cabernet Franc has the twiggy, green aroma note characteristic of this grape, but the layer of smoke and hints of coffee supporting the berry aromas give the nose plenty of depth. In the mouth, it is full bodied, firm, and steadfast with a slight chew to the tannins (meaning the finish makes you want to chew the wine as if it had some solidity.) The finish is medium length but features very bright berry notes that carry all the way through to the end. The finish is usually where inexpensive wine falls apart. This wine delivers from front to back. As we near December and the time for taking stock of the past year, this is a candidate for my budget wine of the year. Superb value at this price.

Don’t ignore Cabernet Franc when you see it on the shelf. It has many of the characteristics of Cabernet Sauvignon but the grapes are less costly so they often offer good value.

This wine calls for some straightforward, sturdy Heartland Rock, tough but with some finesse. Here’s a great clip from The Boss when he was young and “Growing Up”

For everyday wines under $15 you can’t expect greatness—the economics of winemaking do not permit it. But what I look for are hints of originality, a winemaker striving to distinguish her product from the sea of ordinary sitting on the bottom shelf. Too often wines in this price range aim for the same style–big and juicy, but soft and smooth, flashy but innocuous and safe, concerned to leave a good first impression but with little for the more attentive drinker to appreciate. Bold but safe usually ends up just being confused.

So when I find a wine with that spark of originality it’s cause for celebration. So let’s celebrate.

The first impression is juicy blackberry with a little earth, but intriguing spice notes, nutmeg wrapped in milk chocolate woven with whispers of smoke, creep in to set this wine apart. On the palate, there is plenty of flavor though not excessively ripe. It is medium-bodied, svelte, graceful, and lively, with very refreshing acidity, especially on the finish which shows lingering after-flavors of tart cranberry and slightly charred wood, supported by tannins that have some grain but don’t grip. More spice-driven than fruity, more elegant than bold, great clarity and complexity for the price.

A unique blend of 78% Cabernet, 18% Barbera, 4% Petite Verdot

Outstanding quality to price ratio. If you want a little sophistication for your daily drinker this is it.

If you think of Lodi at all you probably remember it as that place in which John Fogerty was stuck, again. If you’re a wine snob you may know Lodi as the heart of the Evil Empire, the San Joaquin Valley, where they grow the hot weather, generic grapes that find their way into the industrial plonk foisted on unwitting consumers who don’t know Petrus from Pepperwood.

Fogerty may have had his reasons for wanting to skip town and Lodi does grow a lot of grapes for bulk wines—which of course enable consumers to drink everyday wine at reasonable prices.

But during my recent brief stay, I discovered another side to Lodi that too few people know about—small, artisanal wineries, run by dedicated winemakers who toil for the love of the grape, and who make some really good wine. The development of Lodi as a fine wine destination is relatively recent. In 1995, there were only a handful of wineries in Lodi; today there are over 80, most of them small, boutique wineries interested in quality not quantity. Fine wine is exploding in Lodi and far from lamenting being “stuck” there, I can’t wait to return.

There are good reasons why Lodi can make quality wine. Cool breezes off San Francisco Bay make their way down the Sacramento River delta moderating temperatures, especially at night, allowing grapes to ripen more slowly and maintain acidity levels. The result is well-balanced, elegant wines from grapes that take advantage of the San Joaquin Valley’s sun without withering from excessive heat.

What makes Lodi a promising wine tourist destination? They have a focused effort to make their wine tourism successful. The Lodi Wine and Visitors Center is at the center of this effort, educating anyone who will listen about the virtues of Lodi wine. A visit to the region should start there. Their staff is helpful, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic. You can taste from their extensive list of local wines, and they’re more than willing to give visitors advice about where to go to satisfy individual tastes.

But Lodi is also unique in their approach to winemaking. Most wine regions specialize in certain grapes that are suitable for their soil and climate. But Lodi vintners are out to prove they can grow anything. There are over 85 different varietals grown in the region and rampant experimentation seems to be their M.O. This makes it an interesting region for wine lovers who like to explore new approaches to winemaking. Old Vine Zinfandel is what the region is known for but I tasted Barbera, Tempranillo, Portuguese, and Rhone varietals (white and red) that seem to do well.

Of course, wine tourism is not just about wine. You need accommodations and good food as well. I didn’t have the opportunity to sample the accommodations but I had some good grub. Alebrijes Mexican Bistro serves innovative Mexican cuisine at reasonable prices. The Skirt Steak with cilantro, lime, and tequila marinade, their Mole, and the Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp were standouts. School Street Bistro serves southern cuisine with a California twist. The Cornmeal-crusted Catfish with Bourbon/Pecan Sauce, as well as their steaks, were excellent.

So if the thought of Napa, Sonoma, and Paso has that “been there done that” quality, put Lodi on your destination list.

My trip to Lodi last week was by necessity very brief. I visited four wineries and I would recommend all of them as worth your time and attention.

Saint Amant’s Mohr Fry Ranch Old Vine Zin was extraordinary. But they also feature Syrah, Portuguese varietals–Verdelho, Sousao among others–and several ports that really did bring back memories of my visit to Portugal a few years ago. Their Tawny (100% Bastardo) is the closest thing to real Port-style wine you will find in California. Housed in an industrial park, this winery has deep roots in Lodi’s winemaking history and their Assistant Winemaker Joel will tell you all about it.

Harney Lane wins the prize for location, location, location. Acres of vineyards spread out from their well-appointed tasting room, which opens onto a lovely garden area ideal for a picnic or solitary contemplation, enhanced by a glass of wine of course. A classic Old Vine Zin will augment the mood but I also enjoyed their leathery Tempranillo and the crisp Albariño with citrus notes that leap from the glass.

The “Most Daringly Original Concept” goes to Acquiesce Winery—all whites, all Rhone varietals. Winemaker and proprietor Susan Tipton loves food and wine pairings. She developed a mad crush on a white Châteauneuf-du-Pape that paired well with the foods she liked to eat. So that is what she makes. White wines in the Rhone style that capture the crisp acidity and lush aromatics of these under-appreciated varietals. And her wines are dead ringers for the French versions. Curious about Picpoul?—she makes one. Want to know what a correct Viognier tastes like (without that distracting oak)?—she has it. All were paired with snacks that highlighted the quality of these food-friendly wines. My favorite was the Belle Blanc, a blend of Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, and Viognier, which was weighty and mouth filling yet dry and crisp.

I hate to pick a winner from among these excellent wineries. But it was at Kidder Family Winery that I found my Thanksgiving wine—a surprisingly complex Barbera, earthy enough to complement the stuffing and gravy but not so big as to overwhelm delicate white meat. And for the day after, the Kidder Duet—a blend of Graciano (55%) and Tempranillo (45%)—stole the show. Big, dense, and tannic but with a lithe, supple mouthfeel and long finish, this combination of power and elegance is irresistible. When you visit the winery, you might get winemaker and co-proprietor Aaron Kidder to tell you about his childhood appearance on the Ed Sullivan show.

You can sense a theme here—a culture of creative people, finding their way in the wine business, who love to talk about what they do. Sampling their wares is a great way to spend a weekend.

Many of the smaller wineries in Lodi are not open everyday. Be sure to check their tasting hours before visiting.